When we ask ourselves, what is the role of work in our lives, there are often two camps: Work is just work or find your passion in your work. But most of us want to find the middle ground between those extremes. Today, I’m revisiting the question of the role work plays in our lives, and how we can make work work better for us. Workplace culture expert Bree Groff joins me to talk about how we can bring more humanity and fun to our work. After all, we spend so many hours of our lives working, why ...
Aug 20, 2025•47 min•Ep. 165
I’m flipping the mic again and being interviewed by my friend and past guest, Neha Mandhani, about the journey of writing and publishing my book, Sustainable Ambition: How to Prioritize What Matters to Thrive in Life and Work. In this conversation, I reflect on the vulnerable, imperfect process of writing and releasing the book because Sustainable Ambition isn’t a magic wand that will give any of us all the answers, it’s a journey of ups and downs that I am on right alongside all of you. Learn m...
Aug 06, 2025•50 min•Ep. 164
In this episode, I share conversations that informed the Sustainable Ambition method and appear in my book, Sustainable Ambition: How to Prioritize What Matters to Thrive in Life and Work . I wanted to revisit these segments with Heather Ainsworth, Dr. Sahar Yousef, and Jack Hsueh because they are wonderful examples of the pillars of Right Ambition, Right Time, and Right Effort and how they align to create Sustainable Ambition. Thanks for Listening! If you liked this episode, please rate, review...
Jul 23, 2025•56 min•Ep. 163
As of this recording, Sustainable Ambition: How to Prioritize What Matters to Thrive in Life and Work has been out in the world for two weeks and I’ve been so gratified to hear from readers and reviewers that the book and its principles are resonating and that they’re already putting it to use. This episode is a continuation of my conversation with Dr. Dawn Graham about Sustainable Ambition . Here we dive deeper into the practical aspects of the method and how you can apply them in your own life...
Jul 09, 2025•30 min•Ep. 162
Before we can step into Sustainable Ambition, we first have to challenge what we’ve been taught to believe about success and ambition. Today I’m sharing an excerpt of the audiobook for Sustainable Ambition: How to Prioritize What Matters to Thrive in Life and Work. Chapter Two, “ Reclaim Personal Success and Ambition as Your Own,” breaks down why you need to define success on your own terms and offers a broader, more freeing way to think about ambition. Thanks for Listening! If you liked this ep...
Jun 25, 2025•41 min•Ep. 161
In this special episode of Sustainable Ambition , I’m doing something different. I’m stepping out of the host seat and into the hot seat! To celebrate the launch of my new book, Sustainable Ambition: How to Prioritize What Matters to Thrive in Life and Work , Dr. Dawn Graham — corporate psychologist and career coach — joins me as guest host to flip the mic and interview me about the ideas behind the book, my personal journey, and what it really means to pursue ambition sustainably. This conversa...
Jun 11, 2025•24 min•Ep. 160
When we encounter a conflict or constraint that prompts us to question our current path, how do we determine our new way forward? After a long career with Procter & Gamble, including a senior leadership role in R&D, Ashish Chatterjee hit a surprising and painful inflection point — one that challenged everything he thought he knew about success. Ashish’s story is a masterclass in leading through challenges, finding your center again, and building a second act (whether inside or outside a ...
May 28, 2025•41 min•Ep. 159
What does it look like to live your ambition sustainably, with joy, intention, and wholeness? In this episode, I’m joined by Erica Meade, a former tech leader who made an unexpected and inspiring pivot — from product design work to making miniatures, co-founding a startup, and redefining what “work” means on her own terms. Whether you’re at a crossroads, recovering from burnout, or just seeking inspiration to reconnect with your own joy, this episode offers a refreshing, honest look at ambition ...
May 14, 2025•55 min•Ep. 158
In this deeply resonant conversation, I sit down with Moe Carrick — author, consultant, and advocate for more human-centered workplaces — to explore the role of work in our lives and what it really takes for people to thrive. Moe brings both research and lived experience to the table, sharing the seven human needs we bring to work, how they shift over time, and why we must move beyond the “ideal worker” and “perfect mother” myths. She challenges conventional narratives about ambition, wellbeing,...
Apr 30, 2025•52 min•Ep. 157
How we think about and plan our time matters, especially if we want to focus on the ambitions and goals in life and work that truly matter to us. My guest, Laura Vanderkam, has been studying time management for over fifteen years. In our conversation, she offers a fresh perspective on common narratives about how much time we have and how we use it. Her approach is both optimistic and practical, with concrete tools and insights to put into your own practice of managing your time. Learn more about...
Apr 16, 2025•48 min•Ep. 156
As leaders, we have to ask ourselves, how can we create more sustainability for ourselves and our teams? Among the challenges modern leaders face are the emotional demands of their roles, whether we want to acknowledge emotions in the workplace or not. Dina Denham Smith joins me to dig into the myths and misperceptions around how emotions impact workplaces, why we can’t keep ignoring emotions at work, and how leaders can better navigate being there for their team members in a meaningful way. Lea...
Apr 02, 2025•47 min•Ep. 155
As the Sustainable Ambition podcast reaches its 150th episode, I wanted to take a moment to reflect on the journey and the invaluable insights shared by various guests on the show. The podcast has consistently explored the concept of Sustainable Ambition, exploring how to be ambitious without sacrificing yourself or your life. But the scope and lens of the show has also expanded to reconsider and rethink conventional narratives about success and ambition, and crafting new ways of living and work...
Mar 19, 2025•59 min•Ep. 154
How can we pursue our ambitions without sacrificing our lives or ourselves in the process? It’s easy to get overextended while following our passions, but we can use those moments to learn our limits and what we need to do in order to sustain ourselves for the long term. In this episode, I talk with Cheri Magid about her art and how creative practices can help us live and work in more fulfilling and satisfying ways. Cheri leads a full, ambitious, creative life and today, she shares how investing...
Mar 05, 2025•45 min•Ep. 153
So far this year, my guests and I have been discussing how we can do things differently through experimentation, creativity, and innovation to optimize our life and work for personal success, satisfaction, and sustainability. I’ve often focused on what we can do individually to ensure sustainability in our life and work, because we can’t rely solely on outside forces to do so. But as Dr. Richard Safeer points out, we have to both take personal responsibility and we need support from those around...
Feb 19, 2025•43 min•Ep. 152
At the beginning of the year, it can feel like we have to go all-in right away toward our goals. But it’s important, maybe even essential, to pace ourselves. Today, Merideth Mehlberg returns to dive into how we can optimize our work, not with a full steam ahead press, but by stepping into our own knowing, listening to our bodies, simplifying, and embracing ease, experimentation, and evolution. It’s a more sustainable approach to start the year. Learn more about Merideth Mehlberg: Website: https:...
Feb 05, 2025•50 min•Ep. 151
If we want our experience of work and life to be different, we have to be willing to find new solutions and do things differently. We have to be able to innovate and evolve. I am joined by Dr. Amy Climer to discuss how we can apply that kind of creative thinking and problem solving to designing our work and life. We talk about how we might design work and life in a way that will make it more personally satisfying, successful, and sustainable with deliberate creativity. Creativity is a tool and a...
Jan 22, 2025•46 min•Ep. 150
Let's start this year by exploring how we can live and work differently for more personal success, satisfaction, and sustainability. This complements my last episode that closed out 2024 where I talked about how approaching uncertainty and complexity with a sense of hope, joy, and wonder can help us embrace our agency over our goals and ambitions even in tenuous times. Today, neuroscientist Anne-Laure Le Cunff joins me to talk about her new book and how bringing curiosity and experimentation to ...
Jan 08, 2025•42 min•Ep. 149
At this time of the year, many of us are taking time to reflect, consider what we’ve learned, and determine what to take with us into the new year. In this episode, I share two major themes that I’ve been coming back to throughout 2024. I offer my reflections on embracing uncertainty and complexity and how both can benefit us on our journeys of Sustainable Ambition. I also share questions for you to consider as you look back on 2024 and where embracing uncertainty and complexity might take you i...
Dec 27, 2024•27 min•Ep. 148
Many of us want to make a positive impact and gain fulfillment with the work we do. Caroline Ouwerkerk is a career and leadership coach who works with people in the social impact space to help them find their purpose and pursue it sustainably. Today, Caroline shares the structures she has put in place for herself to help her disconnect from work, how she models sustainable leadership, how to think about right-sizing our efforts, and the importance of connecting with community. Learn more about C...
Dec 11, 2024•48 min•Ep. 147
How can we sustain our engagement in our work and make our careers regenerative? Continuing the series of conversations about managing our work ambitions over time and at different stages of leadership, I’m joined today by Aybala Şimşek Galpin, CEO of the Turkish bank, Şekerbank. Aybala’s story illustrates how our environment and cultural context shape our ambitions. Her career path also shows that alignment of meaning and motivation can sustain us even through periods of intense effort. Learn m...
Dec 04, 2024•36 min•Ep. 146
Learning to embrace leadership and think intentionally about the kind of leader we want to be is important, regardless of where we are in our careers. It’s relevant whether we’re leading a whole team or just ourselves. Today, Pete Steinberg and I dig into what it means to be a leader and to step into that role. If you’re starting a new leadership role at work, it may be time to rethink your leadership approach and consider the kind of leader you want to be in order to make it a more satisfying, ...
Nov 27, 2024•51 min•Ep. 145
How do we stay engaged with our careers and make them feel sustainable and regenerative for the long haul? Today, master coach Merideth Mehlberg introduces common traps that keep us feeling stuck and dissatisfied at work, shares what gets us to the point where we can take action for change, plus offers reassurance that finding more fulfillment isn’t as arduous as it may seem at the outset. Learn more about Merideth Mehlberg: Website Connect on LinkedIn Your Finest Work: Career Fulfillment in a C...
Nov 13, 2024•36 min•Ep. 144
If you are a workaholic or have workaholic tendencies, you are not alone. Many of us struggle with overwork and assessing the right amount of effort to put towards our ambitions and priorities, without going overboard. Today, Dr. Malissa Clark, author of Never Not Working: Why the Always-On Culture Is Bad for Business—and How to Fix It, joins me for a conversation about workaholism and overwork, what drives it, why more people are struggling with it, and what organizations and individuals can do...
Oct 16, 2024•52 min•Ep. 143
What is work? And what is the role of work in our lives? For many Americans, work is a primary source of meaning and identity. But what if you embraced a more holistic identity? Today, I’m in conversation with Simone Stolzoff, author of The Good Enough Job, about the roles of work in our modern lives. Simone invites us to embrace more sides of ourselves as we write our stories and, through a broader lens on identity, be more intentional about the role of our work and the ambitions we pursue. Lea...
Oct 02, 2024•49 min•Ep. 142
If you live and work in the U.S., you might have daydreamed about finding better work-life balance by moving to another country with different norms and structures around work. But what if the challenges of navigating life and work in the modern world are more pervasive than we think? France-based coach and consultant Sandra Fillaudeau joins me to dig into the challenges French professionals face with work-life integration, how those issues are reflected cross-culturally, and what shifts individ...
Sep 18, 2024•48 min•Ep. 141
Sustainable Ambition is a practice and a journey that is ever-changing and each of our journeys is unique to us. In this episode, I reflect on the Summer Book Series, how I was impacted by the concepts I shared in those episodes, and what I have been learning about Sustainable Ambition over the last several months. I also want to share updates on where I am in my own journey of Sustainable Ambition, not just based on the books, but a view of how I am doing with sustaining my ambition over time a...
Sep 04, 2024•16 min•Ep. 140
Part of pursuing Sustainable Ambition is examining how we can live our lives more fully, and with more purpose, without sacrificing ourselves. Today’s guest, speaker and author, Jodi Wellman, calls us to look death in the face in order to become more alive. And while this might sound dour or heavy, it really isn’t. Jodi shares her philosophy for crafting a life well-lived, and it doesn’t always require us to make huge changes in our lives. Small things, done in service of our needs, preferences,...
Aug 21, 2024•50 min•Ep. 139
We hear a lot about resilience these days. We say people who overcome obstacles and challenges in life and work must be so resilient. But is that the only way to build our resilience muscles? What does it mean to build resilience in practice? Building resilience is essential to Sustainable Ambition, both to grow in and navigate our careers over time, and to create the lives we desire and sustain ourselves in the process. Today I’m joined again by Luis Velasquez to dig into how we build the resil...
Aug 07, 2024•38 min•Ep. 138
Over the months of June and July episodes, I’ve been sharing books that have delighted me. Some of them have been written by past guests, while others are new books that have really inspired me to think more deeply about sustainability. My hope in sharing these books with you is that you’ll be inspired, as I was, and think differently about how you operate this summer. Through this summer book series, perhaps you’ll start asking important questions, like, “Well, what do I really want? What is en...
Jul 24, 2024•25 min•Ep. 137
This summer and over the June and July episodes, I am sharing books that have really delighted me. Some of them have been written by past guests, while others are new books that have really inspired me to think more deeply about sustainability. My hope in sharing these books with you is that you’ll be inspired, as I was, and think differently about how you operate this summer. Through this summer book series, perhaps you’ll start asking important questions, like, “Well, what do I really want? Wh...
Jul 10, 2024•30 min•Ep. 136
